Strengthening gender diversity at MCC 

As the 2026 summer of women’s cricket at Lord’s saw records fall and history made, important work was being undertaken behind the scenes to better understand the evolution of the gender diversity of the Club’s membership.

Lord’s hosted its first women’s Test match, breaking the record for the most tickets sold for a women’s Test match in the process. Four matches of the Women’s T20 World Cup were played at the ground, including the sell-out final between England and Australia. Overall, 21 women’s cricket matches were scheduled across the season, doubling the number in 2025 and highlighting once again how successful and popular the women’s game is, not only in the UK but around the world.

In parallel, during the season, the Club consulted with Members and Candidates on gender diversity within the membership and whether we should be doing more to strengthen it.

The basis for this discussion is clear. MCC, historically, has sat at the heart of cricket. As women’s participation in the game, playing and watching, grows, MCC must reflect that in our own membership, both to ensure we represent the modern game and to signal to women and girls that they are equal participants in the sport we love.

The key finding from the consultation is that the majority of our Members and Candidates feel that membership gender diversity is important to the Club, but that the challenge, as always, is in what we can do.

Based on feedback received, the Club worked to identify specific and acceptable options for addressing gender diversity and reviewed these with legal counsel. Through this, we are confident that we have explored all legal avenues for enhancing the gender diversity of the Club and have improved modelling to inform the Club’s policies and approaches moving forward.

As a result of the consultation, the MCC Committee has proposed action in four areas aimed at enhancing the gender diversity of the Club.

Firstly, we will continue to strengthen our female playing programme. Our playing programme is an established way for cricketers to get accelerated membership of the Club. As women’s cricket continues to grow, MCC plays more female fixtures and we need female players to fulfil those.

We will continue to make sure that MCC is a welcoming place for women and that women want to join the Club. In 2026, 26.8% of new Candidate applications have come from women and we will work so that this trend continues.

We will work to reduce the amount of time Candidates spend on the waiting list, including through a proposal for a new Emeritus membership to which Full Members could choose to move and free up a vacancy for the next eligible Candidate on the waiting list.

Finally, while we will continue to concentrate on increasing the female proportion of Full Members, we also acknowledge the connection that all Members and Affiliates have to the Club and will give due focus to the female proportion of other Member types as well.

With these measures, we expect that, in 10 years’ time, the female proportion of Full Members will have risen to 11.6%, from 3.2% today, and to 14.5% of all Members and Candidates connected to the Club.

The 2026 season represents a significant chapter for Lord’s, one that celebrates both heritage and progress. On the field, the growth of women’s cricket is bringing new audiences and new energy to the Home of Cricket. Off the field, the consultation reflects a commitment to listening, understanding and addressing a complex issue as the Club continues to evolve alongside the game.

You can read the consultation report and response of the MCC Committee here.
 

  MCC Membership Gender Diversity Consulation Report